Sorting a View Project Management Help

Changing the sort order doesn’t hide any of your data; it just puts it in a different order. The default sort for most table views is ascending ID order; that is, the lowest ID number appears at the top of the list. Most views, except Network Diagram view, will sort; and some have more fields available to sort by. In general, choose the view you want to sort, click Project :> Sort, and choose the field you want to sort by. You’ll get ascending (A-Z or 1-10) order if you choose one of the fields on the menu. (One exception to this occurs in resource views. If you sort by cost, the highest cost is shown first.) If you want to sort in a different order or if you wish to use a multilevel sort (resources by last name, then by first name), click Project :> Sort :> Sort By to open the Sort dialog box.

sort

The current sort settings are displayed when the dialog box opens. Choose a different field from the Sort By list. For secondary and tertiary sorts, choose fields from the Then By lists. Then, choose ascending or descending order for each field. If you want items permanently renumbered after the sort, enable that option. For task lists, choose whether to maintain the outline structure.

Applying a Filter

Too much data? Tr yon a filter. It’s fast and easy, and allows you to see relevant portions of data rest. For example, the calendar shows all tasks for any given date. you can choose to view one certain type of task by choosing it from the Filter List in the Formatting toolbar.

navigate to the view you want to filter. Then, select a filter from the list on the Formatting tool bar. The default is no filter, so if you haven’t applied any filters, task views show All Tasks and resource views show All Resources. If you filtered this view previously, the filter last applied is displayed next to the drop-down list arrow. Show
all items in the view by choosing the AIJ option from the top of the filter list

TASK FILTERSAND THEIR FUNCTIONS

Some filters require input before they can be applied. In those instances, choosing the filter from the list automatically produces a dialog box in which you ca~ provide the parameters for the filter.

RESOURCE FILTERS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS

Using AutoFilter

AutoFilters provide one of the quickest ways to “pull out” relevant portions of your data for viewing. You want to see all tasks assigned to a particular resource. Or, you want to see all resources with an overtime rate of S30/hr. In any view, click the Auto- Filter button on the Formatting toolbar to turn on the AutoFilters, which appear to the right of column headers.

Figure 17.12 shows the Resource Sheet for the XYZ-BOTproject with the AutoFilters turned on. Click the filter arrow for the field you wish to filter on and choose the value you want to display. Project applies a “(Field you filtered IOn)equals [Value you chose from the list)” test to determine-which rows of data to display

Creating and Saving Custom Autofilters

Let’s say you want to see resources with overtime rates between a certain range. Or you want to display all tasks assigned to two different resources. To filter for more than one value at a time or to use a filter condition other than “equals,” you need to customize. Click the Auto Filter arrow on the field you wish to filter, and choose Custom from the list. The Custom AutoFilter dialog box opens. This is where you establish the criteria for the filter

Creating and Saving Custom Autofilters

The drop-down lists on the left contain tests: greater than, less than, equals, contains, begins with, etc. The drop-down lists on the right show values for the selected field. You have to select a test from the list, but you can type values if the’ ones you want to use aren’t on the “list.For filters that ‘require two tests, you must choose an operator (And or Or):

• Choose” And” if you want both tests to be true in order to display the row.
• Choose “Or” if you want the row displayed when either test is true.

Table 17.5 lists the tests and some information about how to use them

TABLE 17.5 CUSTOM FILTER TEST

TABLE 17.5 CUSTOM FILTER TEST

Grouping Resources

Project 2000 now allows you to categorize resources by grouping them in ways that make sense to you. For example, in the XYZ-BOTProject, resources are assigned to one of these groups: management, training, technical, or support. Once groups are assigned, you can sort, filter, or edit resources by group.

The Group field is displayed by default in Resource Sheet view. When you’re entering resource information, simply type a group name in the field. Resources with the same value in the Group field are, of course, assigned to the same group.

Let’s say you want to see the critical tasks assigned to each group, as shown in Figure 17.15. Grouping resources based on multiple criteria requires some additional configuring. First, make sure that all resources are assigned to a primary group. Next, create a custom group as follows

1. Click Project > Group > More Groups to open the More Groups dialog box. (It should look familiar by now. It looks just like the More Tables, More Views, and More Filters dialog boxes.)
2. Click the New button to open the Group Definition dialog box, or choose an existing grouping on which to base your custom group and click Copy. Make sure that you choose the correct option (task or resource) to get to the fields you want to group by. To create the multiple grouping in Figure 17.13, we chose the Task
3. Give your new group a name, and then choose the field you want to group by. Change the order default to descending if you wish. (You,might want to do this if you’re grouping by a numeric interval, such as cost, so your highest cost appears at the top of the sheet.)
4. Configure formatting options if you want them to be different from the default (we didn’t).
5. If you’re grouping on a numeric field, the Define Group Interval button will be enabled. Configure an interval for the field in the dialog box that appears when you click the button.
6. Enable the Show Summary Tasks feature, if you wish.
7. Click OK to close the Group Definition dialog box and return to More Groups. Your new group will appear in this list

What’s Next

Views form the basis for the way you look at project data onscreen. If the project team is small, you can gather the members around the PC monitor to talk about project status. An LCD projector allows you to share this same information with larger groups. But there’s always a point when you’ll want printed reports for distribution to team members, upper management, board members, stockholders, etc. Chapter 18 walks you through creating reports that display the data you want to share in ways that are understandable to any audience. As an added bonus, you’ll learn ‘how to use pictures and drawing tools-to add-emphasis and “spice up” views and reports.